Tire Chains

When I was trucking, I carried a full complement of tire chains and wasn't afraid to use them when conditions made it prudent. I kept picking chains that other truckers cast off or had been thrown off from not being installed correctly. I even found them new, never installed, thrown out in their canvas bag!
Today I cut down some of my stock to fit on my small Kubota. Came out nice.

They do look good and as you well know chains make all the difference on ice and hard packed snow. A friend of mine has a Kubota that he bought a couple years ago. I think it's a little bigger than the one pictured as it has a cab and loader. It has 24" rears and he just bought a set of chains for it and discovered they would rub unless he put wheel spacers on the rear. He has over $1200 invested in just the rear chains and spacers. The last set of chains I bought were for 15.5 x 38 tires and cost $110 at an auction.

Traveling out west in the winter, I could count how many chains per MILE I saw on the side of I-80 in Wyoming. I thought if I were retired and had a pick-up, I could drive around, and make good ones out of bad ones then sit at the POE and sell them to truckers who don't have them. Many sets I found discarded at the pull-outs after the "sisters" in western Wyoming and around Elk Mountain or Sherman in eastern Wyoming. I found complete sets still in their canvas bag at the back of truckstops.
I kept the three railers for myself, the singles I fixed and used as "spares" in case a three railer broke. I have so many that I can dis-assemble for parts to fix others.

If you have lawn tractor tires. they work very well, farn tractor tires, the links get caught between the tread and they don't work as well.
I have had farmall cubs for over 50 years with both type of tires. Ohio winters we got lots of snow.

Don Graves

A diamond pattern with a center ring would make better chains for the AG tires but a lot more work. These should do ok esp since I doubled up on the cross links.
I'm not a glutton for that much punishment.

This is interesting reading about tire chains. I grew up in Va. in the ‘50’s & ‘60’s. We had snows and of course tire chains were common. When it became known I was going to Fairbanks, Ak., (USAF), I decided I needed a good set of tires on the car I was taking north. (‘66 Fairlane, conv.) since steel belted radials were the going rage at that time, that’s what I choose. I bought Michelins from the Sears store and never gave chains a thought. Took off for the 49th state and was there for 18 months - Nov. ‘71 to Apr. ‘73. Two winters essentially plus travel to and from. Those steel belted radials were the best decision in preparation I made. Being Air Force, when I was supposed to be on duty, I never missed. Never once was I in a situation needing chains. We had some deep snows and I’ll admit some times that chains would have made conditions better, but I was never stuck, nor did I put on snow tires. However, later, living in Tenn., there were times when studded snow tires and chains together weren’t enough!

With semi's it is less about being stuck (although that is a big part of it) but about being able to control 80K pushing you either back down the hill backwards (try controlling a truck/ trailer combo while sliding backwards) or by pushing you forwards down in a straight line while the road curves.
The time to put them on is before you need them.
Tractor plowing my drive is no big deal if it gets stuck, just inconvenient.

CB, I doubled the cross links also, that helped a lot.
Don Graves